Film – Mamma Mia!

I’ve driven to Museum of Civilization and back this Sunday. It is a 48km ride all together. Here are some of my thoughts:

- When going for a bike ride always bring pick-nick lunch. You never know how far you’ll go or how long you’ll stay. When I set out for the ride, I planned to not go further than Andrew Hayden park about 20 minutes out of Kanata. An hour later, I was in Gatineau.

- Always have a list of different places where you can go during the high sun hours. Museum of Civilization was perfect because it had a lot of space for Trevor to run around in and for us to have lunch. Some exhibits, such as the First People’s Hall, are free so if you’ve already been to the Children’s Museum twice that month, you can save the $10 fee and still have a nice noon hour.

- Child proof museums are the best thing ever for parents with active toddlers. National Arts Gallery was a bit of a challenge because of lack of interest and exposed artwork, but Museum of Civilization (particularly Children’s Museum section), Natural History Museum and Museum of Technology are all a hit. I have to consider getting the family membership as the fees run in $10 range.

- the section between Corkstown and Beaverbrook is the most boring bike path ever. Plus there’s a strange wind angle which makes biking really hard. Not pleasant at all after you’ve already been biking for three hours. Next time I might even consider biking the Corkstown road hill, just to avoid it.

- I was somewhat divided between bike trailers and toddler seats you put on the back of the bike. I’d still like to try the bike seat. Trevor either falls asleep or complains in the trailer which he probably wouldn’t do in the seat. This is good or bad depending on the plans for the day. On the way back he lied down sideways on the little bench in the trailer. How he managed to do that while tied with a 5-point harness is beyond me but he seemed insistent on that position. Trailer was quite convenient in that I could bring a backpack and my proper purse with me (perhaps even a change of clothes). I had a pick-nick blanket and some toys there too, just in case. When we went to the museum, I took it with us as a stroller. I don’t know if I would be comfortable enough leaving it locked with the bike. It was a hit at the museum, some Japanese tourists and later a little boy thought it was an exhibit and started pushing it around.

- I really want to get some cycling shorts. I did not feel like I needed them before while I was biking to Carleton, but I would have been much more comfortable while pulling the trailer. I didn’t feel that pulling the trailer was too much work, but I did ride much slower than usual and I felt quite exhausted the next day.

Yay!

I worked for a year to make this:

tracelog

Tune in next week for a conditional section.

Film – Fantasia

I joined Chris again this year for 3 films at Fantasia. I chose very well because they were fantastic!

And the titles are…
Our Town
A Tale of Legendary Libido
Gachi Boy

Trevor got to spend some time with his grandma and Chris and I caught up with old friends. All in all, great times were had.

The Fringe

First of all, as far as I am concerned, the Fringe is the best thing that happens in Ottawa all year. There are other fun things to do for sure, but I love Fringe the most. This year I was quite pleased with the shows that I’ve seen and there are many

On the Sly
Wooster Sauce
JOE: The Perfect Man!
A Leave of Absinthe
Greed
Open for Business: The Peacock Cabaret
The Triumph of Judith Shakespeare
Inferno Sonata
Old Growth
Wonderbar!
Raven for a Lark
Teaching the Fringe
The Spy
Crude Love
Die Roten Punkte – SUPER MUSICIAN

Crude Love, Raven for a Lark and Old Growth were my favourites. teaching the Fringe was the funniest.

Farmer’s Markets

We went to the Carp Farmer’s market which is the closest farmer’s market to my house yesterday.

Carp Farmer's Market

It is a nice place to go to on a Saturday morning, but it is nothing like the farmer’s markets of my youth. There is another market right downtown that actually has more food but is very yuppish otherwise (not that there is anything wrong with it, except the prices). There is also Parkdale market somewhere between downtown and my house that I might check out next weekend.

Strawberries are in season here so many farms offer a “pick your own” option. I have been considering taking Trev to this but I have some doubts. Do you think a 17 month old might enjoy a jaunt to the strawberry fields and not hurt himself or someone else’s property without having to be picked up every two seconds? My back still hurts from the visit to the gallery to see an amazing exhibition called The 1930s: The Making of “The New Man.

Film – Get Smart

Copenhagenize the Planet is my new favorite blog. Between you and me, I don’t actually believe half the things I read on that site, but if even the believable bits are true, I say Copenhagenize on!